The members of the Li Family swiftly departed on the wind. Li Yuanjiao's face was slightly pale, but after consuming a Cold Dispelling Antidote and a pill to replenish his true essence, his complexion improved significantly. Beside him, Li Qinghong, who had also exerted considerable energy, took the same pill and regulated her breathing.
Despite his slight injuries, Li Yuanjiao maintained a smile on his face. The storage pouch in his hand glowed with runes, suggesting that it was no ordinary item.
He chuckled and said, "That devil cultivator seems different from the other minor devil cultivators we usually encounter… He's likely one of the core figures like Zhang Huaide and Qiu Ji. I expect we'll find something of value in this pouch."
However, Li Yuanjiao did not open the storage pouch but instead played with it in his hand.
Li Xuanxuan looked at him in concern and asked, "Jiao'er, how are your injuries?"
"It's nothing serious. I'll get Guiluan to help me recover for a couple of days, and then I'll spend the next few months stabilizing my cultivation. After that, I should be able to break through to the ninth heavenly layer," he replied, hinting that he would be using a talisman pill.
Since the old monkey flying behind them, Li Yuanjiao did not want to talk about the talisman pill openly. The four of them flew on for a while until Li Yuanjiao suddenly halted and whispered, "Found it!"
Below them, a minor Embryonic Breathing Realm family was being ruthlessly attacked by a devil cultivator. Li Yuanjiao descended, drawing his sword to strike.
Soon, he returned with a captured Embryonic Breathing Realm devil cultivator, whose limbs had been cleanly severed. The devil cultivator's eyes widened in fear as he pleaded for mercy.
"Open it with your spiritual sense," he ordered.
The Embryonic Breathing Realm devil cultivator complied instantly, and the pouch's contents spilled out. There were no visible traps or seals.
Li Yuanjiao, not interested in finding out whether the devil cultivator had been marked for revenge, ignored his pleas for mercy. With a swift motion, he crushed the devil cultivator's skull under his foot and incinerated the remains with a fire spell, then picked up the storage pouch and its contents.
All of this happened in a matter of breaths. Meanwhile, Li Qinghong, who was meditating with her spear in hand, remained detached and seemingly unaffected by the scene. Li Xuanxuan, however, frowned and interjected, "A single slash would have sufficed… There was no need to sever his limbs and make such a bloody mess."
"It's better this way. At least, there's no need to worry about him using any talismans," Li Yuanjiao replied with a laugh.
With that, they soared into the air. Li Yuanjiao examined the contents of the storage pouch as they flew and in no time, they had arrived at the border of the Yu Family's territory.
Yu Family's Milin Prefecture was engulfed in smoke and fire. Spells and streams of mana light clashed in the air, leaving marks of battle and ruin on the ground.
Li Xuanxuan paused to observe for a moment and then remarked softly, "There are only four generations from Yu Yufeng to Yu Chengyi. To think that the situation of their family has deteriorated so much that recovery seems impossible…"
Li Qinghong, who was holding her spear and watching the bright flames engulf the prefecture, commented, "When clans are founded, their ancestors are either exceptionally gifted and cunning, generous and resourceful, or cautious and ruthless. The first generation built their foundations, and the second maintained them but were less successful than their predecessors… The descendants indulge in comfort and focus solely on cultivation, detached from the hardships of the world. They attain the Foundation Establishment Realm and suppress the other clans, or they risk planting the seeds of future troubles if they don't."
Li Yuanjiao rested his hand on the sword at his waist and murmured, "From our family's high ancestor, Li Mutian, we have seen four generations… The current generation of Xi and Yue is the fifth."
He turned and asked suddenly, "Is there any descendant comparable to the high ancestor?"
Li Qinghong, caught off guard by his serious tone, quickly laughed and said, "Each generation faces its own circumstances. There's no need to compare, Big Brother." ṘÅ𝐍Ổ𝔟Ę𝐬
Li Xuanxuan listened silently to the discussion between Li Yuanjiao and Li Qinghong without saying a word. Upon returning to Lijing Town, he ascended the peak to draw talismans, while Li Yuanjiao and Li Qinghong landed in the central hall to divide the spoils with Li Yuanping.
There were ten spirit pouches of the Embryonic Breathing Realm. After filling the vault with dharma artifacts and spirit items, the remaining forty Spirit Stones were added to the clan account. This replenished the gap left by the Spirit Stones for Li Qingxiao's lineage from Mount Yu.